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The second Erasmus+meeting in Valmiera, Latvia

March was a very busy and exciting time for our Erasmus team, we were getting ready to welcome our friends from abroad in our school. It took a lot of preparation, but it also gave us a lot of emotions and energy – we wanted to show the best of our school, our town, and our country.

The meeting was supposed to cover the second chapter of our project: orientation in European Possibilities, vocational guidance in different countries, school system politics and vocational/educational/career choice.

The time we spent together was really great. The students and teachers from Germany, Denmark, Poland, Slovenia and Spain came with their home works prepared, so we could successfully fulfill the programme, make the workshops meaningful.

There will be a lot of good moments to remember while getting ready for the next meeting in Poland, October 2016.

Denmark remembers the meeting in Latvia:

Erasmus in Latvia

5-10 april

Once we have arrived in Valmeria, we were given a warm welcome by the school’s headmaster and presented with a dancing program by very talented Latvian students. This was followed by the students and teachers participating in ”ice-breaking games”. These fun games made us become much more familiar with each other and made it easier for us to work closer on the various tasks presented to us during the following days.

English is the primary language used among the students during our Erasmus activities, so the participants were given an English lesson to practice their verbal skills and break down any barriers that might have existed speaking a second language. The students showed that regardless of their country they had a strong willingness to communicate and their pronounciation was excellent during the ”tongue twister” activities.

The students presented background information about the”European possibilities”of their individual countries providing us with useful information about how one seeks employment and the skills needed to do so. Later during the week, we also learned about what digital skills we have and which ones are beneficial for future careers.

There were also opportunities to visit a technical school, a milk factory, to have ”hands on experiences” making soap, Latvian bread and constructing rockets at the ”Zino center” in addition to challenging each other in outdoor ”group activities”.

All of these activities opened the students eyes for future ”European possibilities”, helped them examine their hidden skills and talents, and gave them a clearer, cultural understanding of Latvia.

The week ended by the students evaluating the week’s activities, but also receiving ”ambassador t-shirts” and having the chance to socialize, exchange email addresses, and reflect, before departing home to share these rich experiences with their individual countries